P age A?
N ovember 22, 1994 • T he P ortland O bserver
o not m istake what
happened on Tuesday.
A “right revolution”
took place. Not since World War
II has Congress seen such
dramatic change. Republicans
gained over 50 new seats in the
House (the outcome of about 8
races is still pending) and 8
new Senate seats-plus one
switch (Richard Shelby of
A labam a
sw itched from
Democrat to Republican).
While the initial words o f Dem
ocrats and Republicans were biparti
san and sweet and low, it w on’t last.
The Democrats w ho remain are gen
erally more liberal and the new Re
publican majority is more conserva
tive. The only counter to prevent
Clinton from caving in to the Repub
lican right and conservatives in his
own party, if he is to be countered, is
his base-people o f color, workers,
women and progressives.
The election results send a clear
m essage-unless REAL Democrats
offer REAL hope based on REAL
change voters will choose REAL
Republicans. If a Democratic Con
gress can't deliver health care, an
urban policy or investments in our
economic future, voters will choose
FALSE hope and a counter-revolu
tio n -ta x cuts for the rich, an increase
in military spending and a balanced
budget. Sound familiar?
Republicans signed a “Contract
with America." Democrats signed a
“suicide pact” with each other. Most
Democratic candidates ran away from
the President, some Democrats even
ran commercials against him. Demo
crats ran away from their legislative
and political achievements. Demo
crats also ran against their base, us
ing so-called “tough-on-crime" and
R ainbow ]
c o a l it io n
Right Revolution Wins
“ w elfare refo rm " co m m ercials.
Progressives certainly should not be
tolerant o f crime nor defend unwork
able and dehumanizing welfare pro
grams, but neither should they toler
ate Republicans or Democrats using
covert race signals in their (crime
and welfare)commercials to get elect
ed to office.
While progressives and people
o f color may lose later with regard to
social policies, the Democratic Lead
ership Conference (D L C )-the “mod
e ra te ” D em ocratic o rg an izatio n
formed to offset the influence o f the
National R ainbow Coalitionafterthe
1984 presidential campaign, to ap
peal to white males, and to pull the
Democratic Party back to the “cen-
ter”-w e re the big POLITICAL los
ers on Tuesday. With a DLC Presi
dent (Clinton) and a DLC Vice Pres
ident (Gore), the DLC Chairman,
Dave McCurdy lost in Oklahoma,
both DLC candidates running for the
Senate in Tennessee, Jim Sasser and
Jim Cooper, lost big time. Another
DLCer, Charles Robb, would have
lost in Virginia except Ollie North
was so extreme that he divided his
own party and had Senator John
W am er(R-VA); Marshall Coleman,
a third party Republican candidate;
N ancy
R eagan;
N orm an
Schwarzkopf, former Secretary o f
State, Lawrence Eagleburger; and
other Republicans aligned against
him.
While Democrats face an iden
tity crisis, Congressional Democrats
lack a unifying vision or legislative
agenda. The White House has lost
the political initiative. Republicans,
on the other hand, are clear on their
agenda. If there was any doubt about
where the new Republican majority
plans to take the country the new
Speaker o f the House made it crystal
clear the day after the election. Al
though Mr. Gingrich said it might
take a decade, he promised to bury
any remnants o f what he disdainfully
calls the “Great Society, countercul
ture, M cGovernick” Legacy and re
turn America to a more black-and-
white view o f right and wrong.
He said, “There are profound
things that went wrong starting with
the Great Society and the countercul
ture and until we address them head-
on, W e’re going to have these prob
lems.”
Three hundred Republican can
didates ran on the Contract with
America. W ithin the first 100 days o f
Congress it calls for the passage o f
legislation in the House that, among
other things, includes: a new crime
bill which focuses on sentencing, the
death penalty, increasing law enforce
ment, cutting the previous crime bill’s
social spending to fund prison con
struction; prohibition o f welfare to
minor mothers, cuts in Aid to Fami
lies and work requirements for wel
fare; an increase in businesses; a
limit on punitive damages and re
form o f product liability laws; and
support for term limits.
In the Senate they propose to
enact a balanced budget amendment
to the Constitution; putting prisoners
to work and building less resort-like
prisons; and a reversal o f defense
cuts and the prevention o f future
ones.
R ead c a re fu lly the w ords o f
N ew t G in g ric h spoken on CBS
M o rn in g N ew s on W ed n esd ay
m orning: “ I think th a t we have an
o b lig a tio n to listen c a re fu lly to
w hat w as c le a rly a voice for low
er sp en d in g , for less G overnm ent,
for lo w er taxes, for m uch to u g h
er p ro v isio n s on crim inals. I think
it’s p re tty hard to look at g o v e r
n o rsh ip s, state le g isla tu re s, to
look at the S enate and H ouse,
and not c o n c lu d e so m eth in g f a ir
ly big w as h a p p e n in g in A m erica
last n ig h t.”
JaxFax may listen and hear a
d if f e r e n t m e ssa g e th a n N ew t
Gingrich, but Rainbow supporters
should not underestimate the pro
gram or the will o f those now in
power to turn back the clock on civil
rights, voting rights, workers rights,
women’s rights, the environment and
the other political and social gains
made since the 1960s.
better
Send your letters to the Editor to:
Editor, POBox 3137, Portland, OR 97208
Build Relations With Newcomers Of Color
by
K athryn F lewellen
m ajority of the one
m illion new com ers
who have come to the
U.S. each year of this decade
are people of color, Asians,
Latinos, Africans, and blacks
from Caribbean countries.
We African Americans often
have mixed emotions about these
newcomers o f color. The legacy o f
racial discrimination has left us eco
nomically and politically vulnera
ble, and we wonder if new immi
grants and refugees pose an addition
al threat to our already tenuous situ
ation. Some o f us may resent Carib
bean and African immigrants and
refugees because we believe these
newcomers look down on us and do
not want to associate with us. On the
other hand, many o f us spoke out
against the racially-charged policy
toward Haitian boat people which
barred them from applying for asy
lum in the U.S. And many o f us have
registered our objections to the lim
ited number o f African immigrants
permitted entry into the U.S. annual
ly. Given this complex and some
times contradictory set of views, what
position should African Americans
take on immigration?
I believe that we must develop a
strong and we 11-articulated commit
ment to the rights o f immigrants and
refugees that is reflective of our strug
gle for racial and economic justice
and for a positive identity.
As descendants o f the largest
forced migration o f a people in mod
em human history - African slavery -
we have a great deal in common with
today’s immigrants and refugees o f
color. We have a unique understand
ing o f the racism and xenophobia
many o f them confront. Like today’s
immigrants, we know what it means
to be used as cheap labor, then locked
out o f the wealth o f our labor pro
duced. And we know how it feels to
be blamed for everything from na
tional unemployment rates and bud
get deficits to crime.
We who are the descendants o f
slave migrants can be proud that our
struggle for civil rights, equality and
social justice has set the moral tone
for how al I other “minorities” should
be treated in this country, particular
ly immigrants o f color. Our struggle
produced the 14th Amendment to the
U.S. Constitution which granted cit-
izenship o f every child bom in the
U.S., including children o f all immi
grants and refugees.
Our struggle to keep slavery from
tearing apart our families gives us a
framework for empathizing with ref
ugees, many o f whom come seeking
freedom from ethnic, religious, po
litical, social and gender persecu
tion. It helps us understand why im
migrants who become naturalized
citizens and legal residents seek to
bring their spouses, children or sib
lings to this country.
Our struggle produced the 1964
Civil Rights Act, which protects any
person o f color in the U.S. - immi
grants and native-born Americans
alike - from various forms o f dis
crimination.
W e have a m oral o b lig a tio n
to c re a te w hat A frican A m erican
th e o lo g ia n C ornel W est c a lls “ a
p ro p h e tic fra m e w o rk ” - w hich
d ire c ts o u r anger and action at
c o n tin u in g p a tte rn s o f ra c ia l d is
crim ination in em ploym ent, hous
ing, urb an n eg lect and the b a n k
ing in d u stry ’s n e ig h b o rh o o d in
vestm en t po licies.
We African Americans cannot
oppose fair and generous immigra-
tion policies due to fears o f jo b dis
placement or losing the status o f be
ing the largest “minority.” We can
not betray our centuries-long cam
paign for justice by joining forces
with the anti-immigration movement.
We African Americans must “lift as
we clim b,” leaving no community of
people behind to be victimized by
racism and poverty. We must re
member the tragic history o f divide
and conquer - too little for too many.
As w e A fric a n A m e ric a n s
p rep are our ch ild re n for the 21
C e n tu ry , we m ust ask o u rse lv e s,
do we w ant them to be lead ers in
the tra d itio n s o f M arcus G arvey,
W E B . D uB ois, M artin L uther
K in g , a n d
M a ry
M cL eod
B ethune, w ho b elie v e d in ju s tic e
fo r a ll? O r w ill so m e o f us,
th ro u g h o u r rh e to ric , en c o u ra g e
them to bow to the u g lin e ss o f
a n ti- im m ig r a n t b ig o tr y ? T he
c h o ice is ours.
(E d ito r’s note: Kathryn
Flewellen is the director of the Na
tional Immigration Forum's Mi
gration Project, an umbrella group
for more than 200 organizations
that advocate fair and generous im
migration policies.)
The O J. Case: Racist Conspiracy Or Collective Paranoia?
bx
E arl O eari H i tchinson
Nationalof Islam Leader Louis
Farrakhan recently warned that
the media has “destroyed” O.J.
Simpson. He fingered Time maga
zine for doctoring the cover pic
ture of O.J. to make him look more
sinisterand menacing. Farrakham
claimed that Time “did the same to
me" in a cover picture.
O.J. is only the latest smear tar
get. The Nation o f Islam warns that
sinister plots, secret relationships,
hidden agendas and covert plans are
being hatched to destabilize black
organizations and wipe-out black
leaders.
Many blacks agree. It is now
respectable, even fashionable, totalk
about conspiracies and plots against
blacks. On nearly every talk show
I’ve appeared on this year the host
has asked, “Do you think there’s a
conspiracy against blacks? Many
African-American telephone callers
on these shows dutifully chime in
with an assorted list o f plotters that
run the gamut from international Zi
onists to the CIA.
But why has the O .J. case brought
the conspiracy fears o f African Amer
icans exploding to the surface? He
never visibly identified with black
causes He moved easily in the cor
porate world o f money and power.
His friends and personal relations
were mostly white Yet those are
precisely the reasons his plight has
heightened black paranoia If the
mainstream media could relentlessly
assault his character and prosecutors
could orchestrate a damaging cam
paign or convince the public o f his
guilt even before a trial, then every
black was fair game
A majority o f African Ameri
cans in July CNN and Newsweek
polls insisted there was a conspiracy
by “unknown forces” to frame him.
They reasoned that “O .J.’s fall from
grace reinforced the deep belief by
much o f the public that black men
were a menace to society. This would
p ro v id e still an o th er excuse to
marginalize, repress and eventually
physically eliminate blacks.
O.J., say the conspiracy theo
rists, is the latest link in a racial plot
that began in the 1960s It goes like
this. Following the urban uprisings,
the ghettos were flooded with drugs,
alcohol, gangs and guns. During the
1980s AIDS was imported in The
“white establishment” wanted to stop
blacks from developing unity, strong
political organizations and programs
to counter oppression. The plot was
to bet blacks to self-destruct.
Some blacks, like Farrakhan,
named the “unseen forces" behind
the plot. “ Where do the drugs come
from? W ho is the unseen hand. The
government o f the United States." In
editorials and articles, the N ation’s
newspaper, The Final Call raged that
the “unseen forces” had a global
master plan to plunder A frica’s stra
tegic minerals and annihilate Afri
can-American leaders.
There is certainly no proof that
any o f this is true. And most whites
and some blacks laugh at, ridicule
and lampoon much o f this as the
lunatic ravings o f crackpot fringe
groups that trade in paranoia. Still,
we must remember the old line that
even paranoiacs have enemies. His
torian Richard Hofstadter observed
that Americans have always had a
special affinity for “a paranoid style"
in times o f crisis.
(Editor's note: Earl Ofari
Hutchinson is the author o f The
Assassination of the Mack Male
Image.)
p e r s p e c tiv e s
The I.Q. Attack: The
Insecure And Politicians
Draw The Bell Curve
(conclusion)
o, I didn’t leave out
that third category,
a ca d e m ic s ;
they
come under the heading of
“politicians.”
Certainly we must list main
stream sportswriters among the in
secure.” These are the people who
for so long insisted that black foot
ball players were not m entally
equipped to be quarterbacks (or
sportswriters). Among them we
find the same shaky rascals who
advanced the theory o f “a special
physiology” to explain black dom
inance in every sport to which they
gained entrance (articulated heels
and butts,” what about T iger’ and
golf?)
I ’ve r e
c e iv e d m any
phone calls and
letters since I
began this se
ries; a number
from p a re n ts
who have done
two things. First, they have used
the articles to restore many a chi Id’s
self-image (especially last w eek’s
which demonstrated that the I.Q.
score is not ‘w ritten-in-stone.’)
Second, several say they have just
gone out and spent a bundle up
grading the “cognitive environs”
around the house as per my pre
scriptions. Ask and “thou shalt re
ceive,” 284-7084 (kids ages, grade,
etc.)
While I’m trying to recall the
name o f that young black female
astronaut with the vibrant person
ality - and degrees in science, med
icine and astrophysics - I’m leaf
ing through my ‘desk-top I.Q. Bi
ble’ “Practice For Scholastic Apti
tude Tests: Complete Preparation
for the SAT and PSAT (Verbal
Part and Math Part).” It is out o f
printing now but there are many
books out now - though not so
concise and neatly packaged. What
I liked about the first little manual
was that you could j ust scan though
it and immediately becom e aware
o f what SAT and PSAT were all
about (“Mae Jemison” was lady’s
name.)
It is obvious from the book
that the home environment o f the
high I.Q. achievers I described last
week was just the type o f cognitive
incubator that would produce stu
dents capable o f “eating those tests
for lunch”: The right books around,
the current magazines on the cof
fee table, a similar peer group, and
at least one adult around with the
time and inclination to tutor, guide,
reinforce and nurture. It will work
2Thi'
as , ’ve see and demonstrated over
the last 30 years, first in The Dalles,
Oregon where I was an award
winning consultant to the school
district, and then at Portland State
University where I wrote those
“cognitive prescriptions” for many
students who were parents.
C om e to th in k o f it, w hat
I ’ve been d o in g o v er the years
is develo p in g a “N eo -H ead start
P ro g ram ” that takes o v er w here
the o rig in a l left o ff, and th a t
se a m le ssly in te g ra te s into a
seco n d stage w hile a c c e p tin g
the fact th a t “ it ta k e s an en tire
v illa g e to raise a c h ild .” I have
now re ach ed the age and c ir
c u m stan ce w here I can re a lis
tic a lly a s s e s s
the e d u c a tio n
al in p u ts a n d
By
o u tc o m e s o f
Professor the tw o g e n e r
Mckinley
a tio n s that fo l
Burt
lo w e d m in e ,
black or w hite,
rich or p oor. A sp e c ia l c irc u m
stan ce w as the d isin te g ra tio n
o f th at id e a liz e d m id d le class
b ac k g ro u n d o f m ine at about
the tim e I e n te re d high sch o o l
- fo r a th ree y e a r so jo u rn (b u t
still re a d in g v e ra c io u sly ).
The descent to the “deep ghet
to” as they called it provided a new
perspective, a new peer group and
new paradigms for “making it.”
This experience has proved in
valuable through the years, en
abling me to analyze many socio
economic factors in a different
light, and to expose the stereotyp
ical denigrations thrown at minor
ities by such ilk as the “I.Q. Char
latans,” like “Jensen, Shockley,
Ravitch, Farrett, Et. Al.”
So it is the case now th at
w hen you com e to page 270 o f
th a t n e fa rio u s p u b lic a tio n o f
C h a rle s M u rra y , “ T he B ell
C u rv e ,” you w ill be able to
re fu te and c o n d em n th e v i
cio u s, b a ld -fa c ed lie p re se n t
ed by the au thor: “ E thnic d if
fe re n c es in m easured c o g n i
tiv e ab ility have been found
sin ce in te llig e n c e te sts w ere
in v e n te d .” F o rtu n a te ly , I ’ve
b een ab le to fo rm a liz e th a t
“ P re -H e a d sta rt P ro g ra m ” d e
v elo p m en t into a form al stru c
ture th at is being trie d out in
B eav erto n and se v e ra l large
c itie s in C a lifo rn ia , the E ast
and South. T hank you form er
P .S .U . s tu d e n ts , w h ite and
b lack. I rem em b er w hat they
say ab o u t a p ro p h e t in his own
land!
C^liserucr
(U SPS 959-680)
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